Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1887-02-25

off brakes, opened the throttle of his en-
CINE aud pulled away from the rest of he
train, stopping his engine and the two
cars saved Us the rear car combination
mail aud smoker, were partly off the
bridge.
The proof is beyond reasonable doubt
that the train was slowed up before the
first derailment occurred by the partial
application of the brakes-that the same
were let of before the bridge was reached,
and the train was then running along 10y
its own momentum until the brakes were
applied on the bridge, as the rear of the
train began swinging off as stated above
AS soon as the engine was stopped ON
the dump beyond the bridge, Engineer
Pierce ran back over it, met Brakeman
Parker who had jumped from the rear OF
the forward coach before it went upon
the bridge and was following up the train
and sent him to the Junction to give the
alarm and get help there as quickly as pos
sibe, which he did getting Il team at Cen
treville n half mile below
Then Engineer Pierce, Fireman Thresh-
err, Baggage Master Cole, Express Messen-
ger Robbins and Postal Clerk Perkins
took axes, shovelS and bars, hurried to the
rescue of the sufferers and worked man
fully until driven from the wreck by the
flames. The rescued hurried or were help
ed to the house of one Oscar Paine about
% rods away.
The attempt to stop the fires within the
cars awaited nothing as the same could not
lbs gotten at in season and accordingly all
the efforts of these men and the passen-
gers who were not disabled we're directed
to the releasing of those confined The
cars were all heated by coal stoves and
lighted by lamps with mineral sperm oil
which was 300 degrees fire test The brakes
were the Westinghouse automatic air
brakes.
Notice of the accident was wired from
the St Adams Office of the railroad com
pany Saturday morning to each of the
commissioners. One of the commission
ers and the clerk of the board arrived upon
the scene at an early hour and while the
fires were still burning; another member
of the board arrived soon after noon and
all We're present before night. EXamina-
ton of the premises at the wreck and at
the point of deraiment was begun soon
after daylight and continued through Sat
urday, and formal Investigation by the
board was begun on the following Mon
day at White River Junction, all formal
or longer notice of the same being waived
by the president of the railroad com
pany.
From Monday afternoon until Thurs
day noon of that week and on Monday and
Tuesday of the week following, the board
was in session here or elsewhere in to Wn
taking testimony, generally day and even
lng,wlth the aid of stenographer. Forty
one witnesses have been examined includ-
ing some who went down in each car, all
the tralnmen who survived, section men,
car inspectors and railroad officials and
employees from within and without the
State and others.
FACTS POINTING TO THE CAUSE OF THE AC-
C1DENT.
The 18th rail from the south end of the
IriH fra ha ;,ef l., ,r
right hand rail going north, was found to
be broken at point 10 feet and . inches
from the end farthest from the bridge and
the part broken off was itself broken into
several fragments, and at the several
points of fracture showed defect run
ming lengthwise of the rail, on the inside
thereof, beginning near the end and about
one fourth of an inch from the surface of
the ball and running back and gradually
extending deeper into the body of the rail
ms defect existed in the bloom from
which the rail was rolled and nowhere
appeared upon the surface of the rail.
This rail was 30 foot rail- rolled AT St.
Adams from BeSSemer steel bloom from
Germany and weighed 90 pounds to the
yard.
sThe 18th rail from the south end of the
bridge, on the same side of the track, was
also broken and crowded out to the right
the outer spikes being bent down or the
heads torn OFT, and some of the inner
spikes driven into the Sleepers or ties.
The other rails on tnat side of the track
and between the broken rails and the
bridge, were crowded out of place to the
right and several of them bent outward,
while all the fish plates were either broken
OFF or badly bent.
There were flange marks on the ties and
frozen earth and also indications of heavy
blows upon some of the ties and earth for
several rods before the bridge was reach
ed, continuing to the abutment; also of
abraslons or scrapings. of the inner side
OF the left hand rail at different points, sc
AS to leave impressions and indentations
as if made by some substance as hard
as itself, trying to climb those rails
The middle journal of The forward
trucks of the sleeper Pilgrim" was
broken about midway between the wheels
at some time in the accident One whee
and portion of the broken journal wa.
found on the ice above the bridge ton the
left hand side as the train was going out
of reach of the fire or smoke; the Other
wheel with its part of the journal wa.
near two rods from it on the other side o
the bridge, with the wreck-both beinl
between the first abutment and the frs
pier of the bridge.
The journal was indented diagonally
across the fracture-a portion of the in
dentation being on one side of it and
portion upon the other side. The indenta
ton and the fracture both appeared to b,
fresh. The journal was also slightly ben
at the break and no defect could be dis
covered in it.
Robert Fletcher, professor of civil en-
gineering in the Thayer school, Dart
mouth college, who examined this jour
nal on the day of the accident testfie,
| that 1T had fracture such as he hat
| generally seen in fractures of the kind
partly granular and crystalline surface
and that he did not detect any defect II
it, Such was substantially the teSti
mony of the practical railroad men ant
mechanics who testified on this point
| This journal is of wrought iron, one o
the standard journals of the Pullman Ca
| company, made in Chicago.
The bridge was double lattice bridg
900 feet long and 43 feet high, built il
place of one burned in 1859, covered wit
sheet iron roofing. The sleepers and trac
lay above the roof, with safety guard
consisting of timbers eight inches square
nineteen inches outside and rising one an
"A half inch higher than the top of tn
| rails.
Ia 10 10, i, 1.